Margaret "Peg" Walker (nee Flemming) of Cincinnati, OH, passed away January 24, 2024, at the age of 89. Beloved wife of 68 years to Harry S. Walker. Cherished mother of Buzz (Susanne) Walker, Tom (Lynn) Walker, Kathy (Doug) Miller, Theresa (John) Cummins, Steve (Jasmin) Walker, Margy (Doug) Clark, Michael (Kate) Walker, and the late Jim Walker. Loving grandmother of Eric Walker, Kyle Walker, Patrick Walker, Ryan Walker, Walker Miller, Becca Miller, Brayden Miller, Megan Dickson, Madelyn Cummins, Ben Cummins, Allison Gossett, Lauren Kendzicky, Melina Walker, Emily West, Shelby Clark, Olivia Boeh, Mitchell Clark, Charlotte Walker, and Avery Walker. Caring great-grandmother of 13 great-grandchildren.

Friends and family will be received from 6 to 8 PM Thursday, February 1, at Tufts Schildmeyer Funeral Home, 129 N Riverside Ave, Loveland, OH. Mass of Christian Burial will occur on Friday, February 2, at 11 AM at St Columban Catholic Church, 894 Oakland Rd, Loveland, OH. A celebration of life luncheon will follow immediately at St Columban at 12 PM. Interment will follow 1:30 PM at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, 11000 Montgomery, Montgomery, OH 45249. In lieu of flowers, we invite those wanting to remember Peg to make a donation to one of the charities she supported: Catholic Inner-city Schools Education (CISE) ; Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) ; or the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) .

Peg grew up in eastern Pennsylvania, living in Reading, Phoenixville, and Pottstown. Her father died when she was 6 in a plane crash returning from a mission as a Navy surgeon. Being raised by a single mother during WWII, she spent most of her childhood boarding with families while her mother worked, only seeing her mother on weekends. While the start of Peg's life was difficult and impoverished, negativity or worry were not in her nature. Peg's positive and optimistic outlook became the prevailing theme of her life and in every situation. This was recognized and experienced by everyone she came into contact with. Her upbringing also instilled in Peg a strong belief in the importance of family and being of service to others in need. She lived this passion all her days, beginning with her graduation from Temple University in 1952 as a nurse.

Nursing led Peg to find the love of her life, Harry Walker. While in the Army, Harry needed minor surgery, and nurse Peggy's warm, tender care ultimately led to the beginning of a 68 year loving marriage.

She remained dedicated to the nursing profession all her life, including working as an RN while raising 8 children. Mid-life, she took that passion to the next level, advancing her education with a Master degree in public health administration and then starting multiple home health care and elder care programs in the Greater Cincinnati area. She also took on leadership roles in the community on the Home Health Board for the City of Cincinnati, the Home Health Services Board, and the Executive Board for the Council on Aging. Her drive was always to help those in need find better access to services and care.

Peg told everyone that she loved life and loved people. She also told us she would always be so excited to be seated at a table where she knew no one, so she had the opportunity to meet new people and make new friends. She was the first to arrive and last to leave a gathering, and she lived the Irish proverb she hung on the wall by her front door: Dance as if no one were watching; Sing as if no one were listening; and Live every day as if it were your last. Everyone who knew her well knew she lit up when "Joy to the World" came on, and it was required on the playlist at every family wedding or event.

Peg's lifelong love of learning extended beyond her many degrees and Board appointments. She loved reading, traveling, and photography. She chronicled our many family events, vacations across the country, and her global travels with Harry in photographs. She was always learning a new craft, taking classes and joining groups of other people doing the same. She was a beloved member of a photography group, a scrapbook group, book clubs, and bridge groups, and even late this year she took up quilting. A new quilt she made was just placed over her bed this Christmas.

This same love for people and learning showed up in her spiritual life. Peg was involved in many programs at her parish church of Our Lady of the Rosary in Greenhills, OH, while raising her family, and then St Columban in Loveland, OH. She, along with Harry, led pre-cana classes, were Eucharistic ministers, and were lectors. While her youngest child was in university, she went back to school and received a Master of Arts in Religion from the Athenaeum. She added to her service at St. Columban by co-leading the Bereavement Ministry, helping grieving families create a memorable service and navigate their way without their loved one.

As we prepare to navigate life without Peg, mom, grandma, and great-grandma in our daily presence, we know that the positive energy she brought to every situation will guide our way.